What follows is a somewhat grumpy argument against tester certification programs. I have mixed feelings about writing this, because I know a lot of otherwise friendly people who are involved in … [Read more...] about Against Certification
Quick Oracle: Blink Testing
Background: In testing, an "oracle" is a way to recognize a problem that appears during testing. This contrasts with "coverage", which has to do with getting a problem to appear. All tests cover a … [Read more...] about Quick Oracle: Blink Testing
On Answering Questions About ET
People ask me a lot of questions about ET. I want to be helpful in my answers. A problem I struggle with is that questions about ET often come with a lot of assumptions, and the first thing I have to … [Read more...] about On Answering Questions About ET
Why Talk About Exploratory Testing?
So, there I was at the Dutch Testing Day, last year. I was a featured speaker, talking about exploratory testing. ET is one of my favorite subjects. It is helpful and powerful, and yet by some strange … [Read more...] about Why Talk About Exploratory Testing?
Stuart Reid Says “It’s Better Than Nothing”
I was watching Dr. Stuart Reid talk about model-based testing, some months ago. During the presentation, he complained that so few people used UML for model-making. Why don't more people use UML, he … [Read more...] about Stuart Reid Says “It’s Better Than Nothing”
No Best Practices
Dear Reader, I would like you to give up, henceforth, the idea of "best practice." Thank you. I want to stamp out "best practice" for several reasons: There are no best practices. By this I mean … [Read more...] about No Best Practices
Test For Ambiguity
Here is one test to tell if a sentence is potentially ambiguous: It has words in it. … [Read more...] about Test For Ambiguity
Amateur Penetration Testing
It's traveling season for me. London, Amsterdam, New Zealand, Australia, and so forth. That means I'm killing time in a lot of airports and hotel lobbies. And THAT means I'm testing software on kiosks … [Read more...] about Amateur Penetration Testing
To Repeat Tests or Not to Repeat
One of the serious social diseases of the testing craft is the obsession with repetition. Is that test repeatable? Is that test process repeatable? Have we repeated those tests? These questions are … [Read more...] about To Repeat Tests or Not to Repeat
Test Messy with Microbehaviors
James Lyndsay sent me a little Flash app once that was written to be a testing brainteaser. He challenged me to test it and I had great fun. I found a few bugs, and have since used it in my testing … [Read more...] about Test Messy with Microbehaviors